Tony, or anyone who knows, why was Bryce Stowell sent to Lake County? He got all the way to Columbus last year and is 24 years old. Is this just a temporary thing while they make room in Akron or Columbus? I thought Stowell was one of our higher regarded relief prospects.

Think of Stowell as a rehab assignment in LC. Just as Weglarz was put in Akron, Stowell is being eased in against easier competition to get his confidence up and so he does go all out against equal competition and strain himself to early. Would expect him up to Akron or Columbus after a few apperances. Just like Miller in Kinston before going to Akron.

Stowell is a big time arm, if you remember last yr he was shut down late with an elbow strain. It or something else (he was down for personal reasons) held him back. In spring Stowell 23, (turns 24 in late Aug) lost it... his command was all over the place, I personally believe they are trying to ease him in with kids gloves and give him a competitive advantage against lesser talent level than he pitched last yr. Stowell was only pitching mid to low 90's not bc of injury but rather because his wildness, he didn't lose velocity more than he lost command, sounds like it may have been more related to the personal reasons than the elbow strain. I dont think the Tribe really needs to push Stowell at all and they appear to be just easing him in again.

homerawayfromhome wrote:Stowell is a big time arm, if you remember last yr he was shut down late with an elbow strain. It or something else (he was down for personal reasons) held him back. In spring Stowell 23, (turns 24 in late Aug) lost it... his command was all over the place, I personally believe they are trying to ease him in with kids gloves and give him a competitive advantage against lesser talent level than he pitched last yr. Stowell was only pitching mid to low 90's not bc of injury but rather because his wildness, he didn't lose velocity more than he lost command, sounds like it may have been more related to the personal reasons than the elbow strain. I dont think the Tribe really needs to push Stowell at all and they appear to be just easing him in again.

Yeah, he did not look like the same pitcher this spring. Looked to be overstriding and "dragging" his arm. I am sure they will find room for him in Columbus when he is back in form. No need to rush him. Plenty of deadwood on the Clippers roster when the time comes.

Bryson called up to Kinston. No countermove to fill the LC roster spot (waiting on word re: one to open up the necessary Kinston roster spot). Between all of the call-ups and Stowell's imminent ascension up the ladder, the Tribe will have to send some draft picks or projected MV veterans to LC just to fill the roster.

Upper Box Woodchuck wrote:Bryson called up to Kinston. No countermove to fill the LC roster spot (waiting on word re: one to open up the necessary Kinston roster spot). Between all of the call-ups and Stowell's imminent ascension up the ladder, the Tribe will have to send some draft picks or projected MV veterans to LC just to fill the roster.

Upper Box Woodchuck wrote:Bryson called up to Kinston. No countermove to fill the LC roster spot (waiting on word re: one to open up the necessary Kinston roster spot). Between all of the call-ups and Stowell's imminent ascension up the ladder, the Tribe will have to send some draft picks or projected MV veterans to LC just to fill the roster.

Did you get Aaron Fields and Jordan Casas now being at Lake County?

Yep. It's still at 23 right now even with those moves. Stowell going up would put it at 22.

entertheshoe wrote:Tony I see your presence brought out the best in the top prospects in Lake County:

Levon 3-5 with a HRRonnie Rodriguez with a HRLavisky 3-4 with a HR

Looks like you need to attend more games.

heh, yeah. Impressed by what I saw tonight on the offensive side of things. Ronny Rodriguez to me may very well be the best prospect on that team. Interesting story in talking to him tonight for a piece I am doing on him. He was actually signed by the Cubs at 16, and I have to go back and listen again to the audio from the interview, but something about him in high school in Boston in the states when he signed voided the deal so he had to be released from the contract and then sit out a year and then he signed with the Indians last Sept. It is why he was 18 when he signed. I have to try and do more fact checking on that, but interesting. The story was hard to understand because of his heavy spanish dialect (he speaks pretty good english, though limited some).

It looks to me like there is some decent talent on the LC squad that may serve the Indians well in the future. At the top of my list is Jesus Aguilar who appears to be the best RH power hitting prospect the Indians have had in some time. This is especially good because he plays 1B and the organization is woefully short of prospects there. Aguilar is being considered for top 20 when we post our top 20 later this month.

Alex Monsalve reallly interested me this ST. He looked so good that I was not surprised when it was Lavisky who was sent down instead of Monsalve. He is still a bit rough in his catching skills but he seems to have all the tools. But I was very impressed with his bat potential. He squares up very well and it looks to me like power will develop over time.

LeVon Washington is developing quite nicely IMO. I know that puts me at odds with some on the site but I tend to look at the stats after he returned from injuty as the aberation rather than a true performance indicator. If you look at June and his most recent numbers, there looks to be a positive trend.

Talk about rough! Ronny Rodriguez is all of that but he has some serious tools. Drawing a walk is not among those toolss but it is difficult to overlook the rest of the package, especially at his age.

I think these four will be the heart of our A+ team next year and the rebirth of a system that has largely been devoid of any potenial impact position players at the A+/AA levels this year. They are all unblocked by any talent currently in Kinston and should be welcome position prospects at the upper levels fairly soon IMO.

indianinkslinger wrote:It looks to me like there is some decent talent on the LC squad that may serve the Indians well in the future. At the top of my list is Jesus Aguilar who appears to be the best RH power hitting prospect the Indians have had in some time. This is especially good because he plays 1B and the organization is woefully short of prospects there. Aguilar is being considered for top 20 when we post our top 20 later this month.

Alex Monsalve reallly interested me this ST. He looked so good that I was not surprised when it was Lavisky who was sent down instead of Monsalve. He is still a bit rough in his catching skills but he seems to have all the tools. But I was very impressed with his bat potential. He squares up very well and it looks to me like power will develop over time.

LeVon Washington is developing quite nicely IMO. I know that puts me at odds with some on the site but I tend to look at the stats after he returned from injuty as the aberation rather than a true performance indicator. If you look at June and his most recent numbers, there looks to be a positive trend.

Talk about rough! Ronny Rodriguez is all of that but he has some serious tools. Drawing a walk is not among those toolss but it is difficult to overlook the rest of the package, especially at his age.

I think these four will be the heart of our A+ team next year and the rebirth of a system that has largely been devoid of any potenial impact position players at the A+/AA levels this year. They are all unblocked by any talent currently in Kinston and should be welcome position prospects at the upper levels fairly soon IMO.

Thanks for the scouting report Slinger. I was wondering about Aguilar & Monsalve, their stats look great but I have a hard time projecting players that I haven't seen based on stats. How do you judge Aguilar's projection with the contact tool? He seems to K a lot but his BB/K rate isn't terrible.

I had the same concern about Rodriguez. I mean a player should be able to amass more than 2 BB by accident. Of course Monsalve's rate isn't much better: 15BB/56K.

I'm still a big fan of LeVon Washington also. That talent is still there & as a guy who still has big hopes for Trey Haley, Washington gets a lot more slack from me. The batting eye is there, .352 OBP, he just needs to get healthy to get the power numbers up. I'd be surprised if he isn't playing the OF in Cleveland in four years.

indianinkslinger wrote:It looks to me like there is some decent talent on the LC squad that may serve the Indians well in the future. At the top of my list is Jesus Aguilar who appears to be the best RH power hitting prospect the Indians have had in some time. This is especially good because he plays 1B and the organization is woefully short of prospects there. Aguilar is being considered for top 20 when we post our top 20 later this month.

Alex Monsalve reallly interested me this ST. He looked so good that I was not surprised when it was Lavisky who was sent down instead of Monsalve. He is still a bit rough in his catching skills but he seems to have all the tools. But I was very impressed with his bat potential. He squares up very well and it looks to me like power will develop over time.

LeVon Washington is developing quite nicely IMO. I know that puts me at odds with some on the site but I tend to look at the stats after he returned from injuty as the aberation rather than a true performance indicator. If you look at June and his most recent numbers, there looks to be a positive trend.

Talk about rough! Ronny Rodriguez is all of that but he has some serious tools. Drawing a walk is not among those toolss but it is difficult to overlook the rest of the package, especially at his age.

I think these four will be the heart of our A+ team next year and the rebirth of a system that has largely been devoid of any potenial impact position players at the A+/AA levels this year. They are all unblocked by any talent currently in Kinston and should be welcome position prospects at the upper levels fairly soon IMO.

Thanks for the scouting report Slinger. I was wondering about Aguilar & Monsalve, their stats look great but I have a hard time projecting players that I haven't seen based on stats. How do you judge Aguilar's projection with the contact tool? He seems to K a lot but his BB/K rate isn't terrible.

I had the same concern about Rodriguez. I mean a player should be able to amass more than 2 BB by accident. Of course Monsalve's rate isn't much better: 15BB/56K.

I'm still a big fan of LeVon Washington also. That talent is still there & as a guy who still has big hopes for Trey Haley, Washington gets a lot more slack from me. The batting eye is there, .352 OBP, he just needs to get healthy to get the power numbers up. I'd be surprised if he isn't playing the OF in Cleveland in four years.

You are entirely welcome Rocky. Aguilar will be tested as he moves up. He was awesome hitting fastballs in ST but not so much on breaking balls and even less on changes. Although not the athlete Abreu is, he has a better idea of pitch recognition and the zone but needs work. However, he has time to pick it up. Tony and I watched Bartolone and Rodriguez alternating at SS in pitching/batting drills. I liked Bartolone but Rodriguez made a play to his backhand that was something special. Later I watched him hit against some older prospect pitchers. His swing reminds me somewhat of Gutz. Good bat speed with quick wrists in the zone but too long. Didn't have a clue about offspeed pitches and was embarrassed by Burns until Burns tried to get a fastball by him. He hit a rocket about 375. While I can recognize tools, or at least used to be able to, you can tell from my many evaluation screwups that I have no special insights as to how they will develop in those areas.

Thanks for sharing the evals, guys. I'd love to see Rodriguez play in person. I, too, am a little alarmed at his low walk rate, BUT the guy looks to be making fairly good contact -- the guy has 16 extra base hits against 21 strike outs going into tonight. That's an encouraging ratio, and is nothing like that of other free swinging Tribe prospect Abner Abreu who has struck out about 4 times for every 1 extra base hit he gets. Rodriguez is (apparently) taking legit swings and making pretty good contact despite the low walk rate. Don't know about you, but I prefer this to that of Washington's very high walk rate, yet alarmingly high strike out total coupled with few extra base hits. I'm not a Washington hater, but I prefer the guys that can drive the ball and make, at least, fair contact.

Another thing to consider on Rodriguez; has this guy played competitive baseball in the last year or two? His story is strange and I don't exactly know what he was doing last year at this time, but to jump all the way to full season, professional ball and handle the bat the way he has...it's impressive.

Rayl is a guy who has really jumped this year. I recall the org telling me last year how they were really excited about him....and he had a solid season at MV but I didn't see it. I see it now. Not an overpowering lefty, but knows how to pitch. Will be interesting to see what he does pitching in Kinston, which I think will happen soon.

As for Jesus Aguilar, this guy is a legit prospect. Power is real, the discipline is the issue (as with all Latin players is seems). I have been impressed with his play at first base and the Indians really like his athleticism there for his size and believe he will be at worst an average to above average defender there. He is gonna jump HUGE in the prospect lists next year if he keeps up what he is doing at the plate.

Got some tape on Stowell from today. Very good progress in his rehab IMO. I would expect him to arrive in Akron on this eventual return to Columbus after the EL all star game along with Bryson. The pitching should be more formidable even with some RPs likely to move to Columbus.

indianinkslinger wrote:Got some tape on Stowell from today. Very good progress in his rehab IMO. I would expect him to arrive in Akron on this eventual return to Columbus after the EL all star game along with Bryson. The pitching should be more formidable even with some RPs likely to move to Columbus.

Not sure about Stowell but if Bryson stays healthy we might have Chris Perez' replacement in house when Perez moves on. Wouldn't be surprised to see him in MLB next year.

Aren't both (Stowell / Bryson) up for roster protection this offseason? I believe so, personally won't be surprised if we see an arm we'd like to keep maybe a Josh Judy, Kelvin DLC or Austin Adams type dealt soon for a Francouer or Kubel. Prefereably Francouer who offers better arm and having the better season so far.

Stowell, Lee, Putnam and Bryson could / should all get a taste of the bigs next yr. Going to be interesting in seeing how the tribe manages all this depth. At some point I'm sure we will see the tribe make a move (similar to Giles for Rincon during 90s) to fill in the needs on this team this yr and probably this offseason as well. Can't really see them keeping all the guys that will require protection soon...just part of having a deep system is the "fat" has to be trimmed off.

Honestly still haven't figured out why they traded all those guys (esp. Richie Sexson). Id prefer to see them swing a David Huff and Corey Kluber for Jeff Francouer. That wouldn't hurt my feelings at all, but doubt the Royals would be takers. Honestly I'd trade Mitch Talbot straight up for Francouer if they'd do it. The Royals have a deep system and wouldn't want castoffs like Huff and Kluber.

I know alot of people arent high an Kluber and really neither am I but I do believe with a mid 90's FB and decent slider he could at least be a bullpen option for a team not stacked as the Tribe is. Honestly believe thats where he'd be pitching from if not for the depth of the system already present.

The Tribe really lacks that LF of the future and thats where I personally believe they should go in search of acq. talent. I know they will give Juan Rivera a look, possibly Francouer, Kubel, Ludwick, and Melky Cabrera as well. Francouer would be relatively cheap (2.5 mil w/ mutual option in 12), is a RH bat, has good pop and a strong arm and is only 27, having a good season and the Tribe did give him a look in the offseason.

Francouer also has a .660ish OPS since May 1st...he's a platoon bat only. He would take over Kearn's or Duncan's spot...that's it...he's not an every day player....but yeah sure for a Kluber or Huff...why not..don't expect much more than Duncan though...pretty meh upgrade

Francouer would provide a cheap replacement, RH bat power and strong outfield arm. Would be nice LF arm. Not saying he's the best but an adequate potential replacement for Choo short term, and potential LF for remainder of yr and potentially next if acq.

Ronny Rodriguez has been making a ton of outs this year (OBP is terrible), but his BABIP is abnormally low at .215 going into yesterday's game (FanGraphs). Considering he's got a lot of extra base hits, it's fair to say he's probably been a tad "unlucky" as far as hitting balls right at guys. I'm not one of these flavor of the week stat people, but when you see stats that are couple standard dev's from the mean something is going on. His BABIP is probably lower than usual b/c he swings at way too many pitches, but this guy's average should probably be quite a bit higher. This guy is a player. Very nice addition to the system.

Upper Box Woodchuck wrote:I heard something on the LC radio broadcast tonight (7/5) about Argenis Martinez going up to the K-Tribe because of an injury in Kinston, but can't find any official word. Anyone know anything else?

Cannon was promoted from Kinston to Akron on Tuesday, so probably to replace him.

Upper Box Woodchuck wrote:I heard something on the LC radio broadcast tonight (7/5) about Argenis Martinez going up to the K-Tribe because of an injury in Kinston, but can't find any official word. Anyone know anything else?

Cannon was promoted from Kinston to Akron on Tuesday, so probably to replace him.

Thanks! That''s what I figured, but I was worried I had missed a K-Tribe injury.

Upper Box Woodchuck wrote:I heard something on the LC radio broadcast tonight (7/5) about Argenis Martinez going up to the K-Tribe because of an injury in Kinston, but can't find any official word. Anyone know anything else?

Cannon was promoted from Kinston to Akron on Tuesday, so probably to replace him.

Certainly doesn't look like a deserved promotion so I assume it was on a needed basis. Kind of points to the direction that they're not all that high on Cannon. They don't usually force feed their better prospects.

Upper Box Woodchuck wrote:I heard something on the LC radio broadcast tonight (7/5) about Argenis Martinez going up to the K-Tribe because of an injury in Kinston, but can't find any official word. Anyone know anything else?

Cannon was promoted from Kinston to Akron on Tuesday, so probably to replace him.

Certainly doesn't look like a deserved promotion so I assume it was on a needed basis. Kind of points to the direction that they're not all that high on Cannon. They don't usually force feed their better prospects.

Upper Box Woodchuck wrote:I heard something on the LC radio broadcast tonight (7/5) about Argenis Martinez going up to the K-Tribe because of an injury in Kinston, but can't find any official word. Anyone know anything else?

Cannon was promoted from Kinston to Akron on Tuesday, so probably to replace him.

Certainly doesn't look like a deserved promotion so I assume it was on a needed basis. Kind of points to the direction that they're not all that high on Cannon. They don't usually force feed their better prospects.

Might be the only guy they feel can play defense at that level

It might be that whoever was promoted was going to be a reserve infielder and they want the other infielders to play everyday. Or maybe they just feel he needs to be challenged.

Cannon seems like pure roster filler for the system. He is about to turn 24 and is struggling in high A. Even when drafted it seems like he was a super long shot, and his odds are much lower now. It was a strange draft pick, but maybe the 2010 draft wasn't very good so the alternatives were not that great. Right now the tribe 2010 draft is not looking all that great after the third round. Blair, Cook, Bartolone, Jordan Cooper, Cannon...yikes!

Brian (Ohio): What do you think about Lake County's Jesus Aguilar? There are a lot of interesting prospects on that team, but he seems to be the brightest of the bunch.

Jim Callis: Just started working on our Midwest League Best Tools list, and Aguilar got a vote today from a manager as the best power prospect in the league. He's an all-bat guy who will have to cut down on the strikeouts as he advances, but the power is intriguing.

I wonder if he got that vote over Bryce Harper?!

Also surprised he referred to him as an all-bat guy considering Tony projects him of being capable of having above average defense at first base.

Brian (Ohio): What do you think about Lake County's Jesus Aguilar? There are a lot of interesting prospects on that team, but he seems to be the brightest of the bunch.

Jim Callis: Just started working on our Midwest League Best Tools list, and Aguilar got a vote today from a manager as the best power prospect in the league. He's an all-bat guy who will have to cut down on the strikeouts as he advances, but the power is intriguing.

I wonder if he got that vote over Bryce Harper?!

Also surprised he referred to him as an all-bat guy considering Tony projects him of being capable of having above average defense at first base.

Unless you're projected to be a Gold Glove caliber 1B, scouts usually will ignore your defense as a skill. Lots of guys are capable of being an above average 1B, but that's not saying a ton.

I would be with you on Harper...gotta imagine they gave it to Aguilar because Harper got promoted....or that is one heck of a recognition for Aguilar (still is either way though).

It was interesting to look at to see how our predictions have been so far. I also just wanted to note my call on Jesus Aguilar; that makes up for the other many things I was wrong about. I only had him with 15-20 HR and 80 RBI, so I might need to readjust.

It was interesting to look at to see how our predictions have been so far. I also just wanted to note my call on Jesus Aguilar; that makes up for the other many things I was wrong about. I only had him with 15-20 HR and 80 RBI, so I might need to readjust.

Interesting to go back and see what many thought, and where things have gone from there with many of them. Jesus Aguilar is really having a break out campaign this season, one that is tough to not get excited about. RH power bats are really a commodity needed in this organization, and it's easy to tell that when you go to games, that our scouts and development people have all the RH bats with potential "red flagged" ... I've been able to talk to these guys and it's very obvious.

hmmmm with all these prospect lists coming out and all of this talk about our preseason predictions, it may be a good time to start a 2nd half prediction thread if anyone would be interested. I would do it myself, but considering i rarely post Im probably better off leaving it to one of the more active members.

Ronny Rodriguez with a walk tonight ! (as a side note, he's also 3-4 w/ a triple)

I gotta be honest, and I've never seen him play the infield, but I'm excited about this guy. This guy can swing a baseball bat. He shows some pretty slick bat speed in the video w/ him in the Cubs gear. (still think his story is quite odd!)

OhioBaseball wrote:Ronny Rodriguez with a walk tonight ! (as a side note, he's also 3-4 w/ a triple)

I gotta be honest, and I've never seen him play the infield, but I'm excited about this guy. This guy can swing a baseball bat. He shows some pretty slick bat speed in the video w/ him in the Cubs gear. (still think his story is quite odd!)

There are quite a few bats in Lake County this year that could play big next season. Aguliar, Ronny, Washington, Moncrief, Monsalve all look like they have the tools to make a run for it. Next years High A team should be pretty solid.